Los Angeles Blues News Release -- www.labluesprosoccer.com
Wednesday, February 8, 2012
FULLERTON, Calif. – The Los Angeles Blues are excited to announce they will be taking on The Mexican U-20 national team on February 25 and the stars of Mexican club Irapuato FC on March 10. Both high-profile international exhibition matches will be played at the Blues’ home, Cal State Fullerton’s Titan Stadium, and are scheduled to kick off at 7 p.m. PT.
The Mexican U-20s will stay in Southern California following their meeting with the Blues to take on UCLA at Birmingham Charter High School in Van Nuys on February 28 at 7 p.m. PT. Tickets for all three fixtures ($20 for adults and $10 for kids 12 and under) will go on sale tomorrow, February 8, at noon PT and may be purchased by calling 714-738-8011 or by visiting the Blues’ facebook page at www.facebook.com/losangelesblues and clicking on the “TicketFly” link in the drop-down menu on the left. Alternatively, tickets may be purchased at the gameday box office.
The meeting with the El Tri prospects will provide Blues Head Coach Charlie Naimo and his men with a stern test, as the Mexican federation is known to invest heavily into its youth programs, with 2011 serving to illustrate the tremendous success this has yielded. While the country’s U-17 squad proved rude hosts of the World Cup by beating Uruguay in the final, the U-20s finished a strong third at their World Cup in Colombia.
All of the players on U-20 Head Coach Sergio Almaguer’s roster are widely expected to have successful professional careers, and the majority are already knocking on the door with their Priméra Division first teams. Among the most promising prospects are a pair of Monterrey strikers in Jesús Manuel Corona and Luis Madrigal as well as another forward in Cruz Azul’s Martín Galván, all of whom have seen playing time in the top flight.
Known as one of the greatest talents of his generation, Galván has attracted interest from Spain’s FC Barcelona and England’s Arsenal. In 2006, he became the youngest player to take the field in Mexican top-flight history when he made an 85th minute cameo appearance against Monterrey at 14 years and 325 days old.
The El Tri roster also features two players with both Mexican and U.S. citizenship in Houston-born Uvaldo Luna Martínez and Riverside-born Juan Pablo Ocegueda.
Meanwhile, the Blues will be facing one of the up-and-coming club teams of Mexican soccer in Irapuato FC. Unbeaten at home in the 2012 Torneo Clausura, “La Trinca” currently sits atop the table in the second division, tied on points with four other teams. In its last home game, Irapuato earned a 1-0 win over Cruz Azul Hidalgo that came courtesy of a goal from league top scorer José Cruz Gutiérrez, who has four tallies on the campaign and a legitimate shot at winning both the Golden Boot and a promotion to the Primera Division with his side.
Gutiérrez is joined in the attack by goal-scoring machine and Irapuato legend Ariel González, who netted 51 times in 92 matches for Priméra Division outfit San Luis between 2004 and 2007 and has buried the ball 47 times in 74 appearances for his current club since 2009. The Argentine’s history with Irapuato goes all the way back to when he first arrived in Mexico 10 years ago and set out to score 11 goals in 27 first division games for the side before moving on to Club América.
The Irapuato backline is anchored by another veteran of the Priméra Division and a former Mexican national team star in Mario Méndez. The 32-year-old brings all the experience of more than a decade at the highest level, having featured 37 times for El Tri as well as 140 times for Toluca and over 220 times for Club Atlas in the topflight.
One who hopes to take the field with Mendez in his return to Southern California is goalkeeping prospect Sergio Arias, who served as the backup to the formidable Dan Kennedy at Chivas USA during the 2011 MLS season.
Los Angeles will be adding to the Latin American flair of the exhibition matches with players such as former Cuban international defender Erlys Garcia. The 26-year-old earned two caps for his country before defecting to the U.S. during the 2008 Olympic qualifying tournament in Tampa, Fla. His teammates, former Chivas USA man Carlos Borja and forward Luis Gonzalez, both have Mexican roots.
In addition, the Blues are currently talking to two more players with Latin American connections, including a former Mexican international with plenty of Priméra Division experience. The hope is that both will decide to sign and arrive in time for the pair of preseason fixtures.
The Blues take on the Mexican U-20 national team on Saturday, February 25, and Irapuato FC on Saturday, March 10, at Cal State Fullerton’s Titan Stadium, while Mexico and UCLA face off at Van Nuys’ Birmingham Charter High School on Tuesday, February 28. Kickoff for all three matches is 7 p.m. PT.
Tickets are $20 for adults and $10 for kids 12 and under and may be purchased starting at noon PT tomorrow, February 8, by calling 714-738-8011 or by visiting our facebook page at www.facebook.com/losangelesblues and clicking on the “TicketFly” link in the drop-down menu on the left. Alternatively, tickets may be purchased at the gameday box office.